Gift of a Rose
by MissJayne
Summary: Continuation of an Every Day Thought. Someone leaves a rose on Gibbs' desk...


_A/N: So I'm stressed. Beyond stressed. Completely unable to write or even think about writing (a first for me), stuck in the lab dealing with my dissertation as everything goes wrong. Found this old fic on my computer and decided to post it while I remember._

Gift of a Rose

**You don't pick your friends so much as they find you. You don't create friendship so much as it unfolds naturally.**

The flower sat on the desk, seemingly oblivious to the two people staring at it. It wasn't exactly every day that Gibbs received presents.

And certainly not in the form of a red rose.

Ziva had known she was running horribly late, but had been pleased not to see Gibbs or Tony as she arrived. Anyway, it was not her fault if her car had somehow caused a slight pile-up on the Beltway. She really would have to remember which pedal was the brake and which was the gas...

She had raced into the squad room to find McGee was the only occupant. And he was not at his desk but staring at the rose on Gibbs' desk. Her curiosity piqued, she had joined him in staring at it.

It was a beautiful rose, just starting to unfold. Her investigative mind had decided that the rose had been grown in someone's garden rather than delivered by a flower shop. Her biggest hint was the lack of a note. It had to be someone close to Gibbs...

"Did you see who left it?" she whispered to McGee, afraid her voice would break the atmosphere.

Next to her, McGee shook his head. "I ran late this morning and it was already on his desk," he answered. "Don't think Gibbs has seen it yet."

Her eyebrows rose slightly. "We should get to work," she decided. "And find a way to get Gibbs up here."

McGee looked a little concerned. "But then he'll see the rose," he pointed out.

Ziva grinned. "And we can see his reaction."

* * *

McGee was curious about the rose. He couldn't help it – it wasn't exactly every day that flowers were left on Gibbs' desk. The boss kept his private life… well, private. With the exception of Lt. Colonel Mann, but they had been working cases together.

Unlike Tony, who crowed about his every conquest, Gibbs held his tongue. About everything. No one ever knew what was going through his mind, no one could get him to open up. Gibbs simply never spoke.

So any chance to get a peek into his private life was a concept that he couldn't quite believe was really happening. To learn something about Gibbs the man instead of Gibbs the boss was an amazing opportunity. No one in their right mind would give up on it. Tony was going to be kicking himself for running so late when he found out about this, especially if he missed Gibbs' reaction.

He didn't know what it was, but everyone seemed to be running late this morning. McGee had been very surprised to learn he was the first one in, even beating Ziva. And still no sign of Gibbs!

Maybe there were some really bad roadworks somewhere. Maybe there had been a crash on the Beltway, unconnected to Ziva's driving. Maybe Gibbs had fallen asleep under his boat yet again and the wooden structure had collapsed on top of him.

The elevator dinged and he automatically glanced over to see Tony entering the squad room. McGee wasn't sure whether to be happy or depressed. It was nice to know Tony was still in one piece, but the tranquility of the squad room was about to be destroyed for the rest of the day.

And all before Tony saw the rose and became excited.

He watched as the senior field agent dropped his bag behind his desk. "Ziva!" he remarked. "McGoo!"

"Gibbs has been looking for you," Ziva immediately lied. McGee tried not to laugh; Tony had no idea of the boss' mysterious absence.

Tony visibly calmed down. "I _knew _I should have bought some of the swill he calls coffee as a peace offering," he muttered as he took his seat.

"He's not here," McGee confessed.

Tony instantly perked up. "Have you tried hunting for the enigmatic LJ Tibbs yet?"

Ziva scoffed. "Gibbs can take care of himself. I would not rate your chances if he found out you were investigating him."

Tony ignored his partner's statement, rising form his chair and moving over to Gibbs' desk. "Who left the rose here?" he demanded.

Ziva joined him. "We do not know. Gibbs has not seen it yet either."

McGee rolled his eyes and decided to join the small crowd around the boss' desk. If the others were already there, it had to be safe from Gibbs' wrath. He couldn't exactly headslap the three of them at the same time.

"We need to find Gibbs," Tony decided.

* * *

Jenny stood on the catwalk, silently observing the small crowd around Gibbs' desk. She was smiling softly; despite knowing their leader would be furious at their lack of work, their curiosity was winning out over their self-preservation.

She had once been a member of his team and she could recall jumping at any opportunity to learn more about her enigmatic boss. Even now, she took any chance she had to discover new things about him. But she was aware he wouldn't be the same person if he suddenly opened up about everything; he needed his secrets as she needed hers.

The man in her thoughts tapped her arm lightly. She glanced over at him, amused to see his eyes hadn't left his team.

They had been watching ever since McGee had entered the squad room, Gibbs originally appearing from the back elevator with a file that she guessed had come from Ducky. Soon he would be dealing with a case and she had paperwork somewhere. But for now, they were content to observe the team from their hideout.

"There a reason you left the rose on my desk?" he inquired softly.

She grinned, despite not facing him. "Consider it a present for all the times you've given me flowers."

"I don't normally leave your gifts in the middle of the squad room," he pointed out.

She knew he wasn't annoyed. It was more that DiNozzo wasn't going to stop asking about it for the rest of the day or until he had a concussion.

Smirking, she leaned in close and whispered in his ear. "Then perhaps you'll think twice before pulling the emergency stop in your 'conference room'."

"Not my fault if the engineer got it fixed that quick," he protested.

She gave him a sultry smile and headed towards her office. While he scared his team half to death, she had work to do.

THE END


End file.
